Filing appliance.



E. B. MOSELEY. FILING APPLIANCE. APPLICATION FILED APR. 8, 190a.

Patented June 1, 1915;

4 SHEETS-SHEET I- IllllIIIIIIIJIIIIIJIIIVII II.I1I|

1H5 NORRIS PETER.- co I PHOTO l.ITH WASHINGTON, D c.

E. B. MOSELEY.

FILING APPLIANCE.

APPLICATION FILED APR- 8. 190a.-

1,141,4;03, Patented June 1, 1915.

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1 I on I J7 I -4 2a 6 1 T 153 11 47 I 4; S 20'; I I, 27 6 I 43 I N II \J] WITNESSES INVEN TOR.

A TTORZV E Y.

THE NOEE'IS PETERS (:0. PHOTC-LITHO 4 WASHING ION. 0 c.

E. B. MOSELEY. FILING APPLIANCE.

APPLICATION FILED APR.B, I908. 1,141,.

Patented June 1, 1915.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4- WITNESSES: IN VENTOR:

ML/WW A TTORNE Y.

7HE NORRIS PETERS C0,. FHOTO-LITHO. WASHINGTON. D, C.

EMERSON B. lVIOSEIJEY, 0F ALLIANCE, OHIO, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO

THE MGCASKEY REGISTER GO1VLPANY, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

(INCORPORATED IN 1914,) OF ALLIANCE,

FILING APPLIANCE.

menace.

of Ohio, have invented certain new and use-' ful Improvements in Filing Appliances;

and I do declare the following to be a full,

clear, and exact description of the invention, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to filing appliances that are made use of in credit accounting systems, the invention having reference more particularly to bill-holding leaves whichicomprise parts of the appliances, the invention having reference also to the means for supporting the leaves, and to means for balancing the leaves.

Objects of the invention are to provide improvements in credit accounting or filing appliance whereby the construction thereof may be simplified and cheapened; to provide improved devices for connecting vthe leaves thatwill permit of the leaves being stepped when upright and also permit the leaves to lie fairly one upon another to form a rectangular pack when drawnforward, so that the forward edges of all the leaves will be in substantially one vertical plane; and to provide improvements whereby the leaves may be spring-balanced in a simple,

effective, and durable manner, furtherob-v jects being made apparent-by reference to the following description.

WVith the above mentioned and other-objects in view the invention consists in an improved filing appliance comprising a plurality of bill-holding leaves provided with automatically movable hinging devices whereby the leaves are hinged one to another in a group, and permitting the leaves to be stepped when upright and in nonstepped positions when approximately horizontal; novel means for supporting the plurality of leaves, and novel devices for applying spring mechanism to the leaves for holding them normally in upright positions and for assisting to raise the leaves from horizontal to upright positions.

The invention consists also in the novel elements and combinations and arrange- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 1, 1915.

Application filed April 8, 1908. Serial No. 425,915.

ments thereof as hereinafter described and defined claims.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation of the improved filing appliance constructed substantially in accordance with the invention; Fig. 2, a fragmentary side elevation showing the leaves removed from the casing of the appliance or cabinet, and arranged in a rectangular pack so as to be compact for insertion into a fireproof safe or vault when not in .use; Fig. 3, a vertical sectional view approximately on the line A A in Fig. 1; Fig. 4, a fragmentary sectional view approximately on the line B B in Fig. 1; Fig. 5, a sectional view showing a number of the leaves drawn forward as they would appear at the plane of the line A A in Fig. 1: Fig. 6, an end view of the hinge-bar of a bill-holding leaf; Fig. 7, a perspective view of a hinge'rod and links whereby either two of the leaves are connected together; Fig. 8, a top view of one of the leaves, minus the frame-strips and bill-clamps thereof and showing the top plan of the hinge-bar and the hinge-rod connected therewith; Fig. 9, a front elevation of one of the forms of pivotal supports for the foremost leaf; Fig.1(), a fragmentary side elevation of the pivotal support: Fig. 11, a sectional view corresponding to the line A A in Fig. 1 showing modifications inthe supports of the leaves and in the arrangement of the balancing devices; Fig. 12, a front elevation of the appliance having the modifications incorporated therein, a portion of the register case being in a vertical section on a plane at the front of the leaves; F ig. 13, a fragmentary sectional view on the plane corresponding to the line A A in Fig. 1 showing a number of the leaves in horizontal positions in connection with the modified form of supports therefor; Fig. 14, a fragmentary sectional elevation similar to a portion of Fig. 12 on an enparticularly in the appended larged scale; Fig. 15 a horizontal sectional of the. foremost leaf inverted, and Fig 19,

a fragmentary sectional detail view of the hinge-bar and hinging devices of one of the intermediate bill-holding leaves.

Similar reference characters in the several figures of the drawings designate like elements or features of construction.

A filing appliance usually comprises a suitable case, the forward portion of. which is suitable for use 'as a writing-desk, and

the rearward portion is adapted to incase the bill-holding leaves in their normal upright positions, the desk portion being convenlent on whlch to draw the; leaves down for insertlng or removing bill-slips, whlch are to be held in systematic order on the leaves in the usual manner. The case may suitably comprise a bottom 1, a back 2', two sides 3 and 3, and atop if, and for the purposes of the present invention a floor 5is placed in the case somewhat above the bottom 1, and extending forward from the back 2,-and a suitable desk-top ti covers the forward or desk portion of the case which has a suitable front 7. Any other features found desirable may he obviously added to the case. i V

A suitable number 01" comprise a front leaf 8, intermediate leaves 9, 9, and a rear leaf 10. The front leaf has a hinge-bar 11 in the top of which is a lon gitudinal groove 12, and the metallic plate of'which the leaf proper is composed extends into the groove and has a flange 13 resting on the bottom of the groove. A suitable number of plates 14 are secured by screws 15 on the top of the hinge-bar, and the plates extend across the groove and through slots 16" that are out in the leaf thus securing the leaf proper to its hinge-- bar as 18 or 18 attached thereto substan-' tially as above described, each hinge-bar having the groove 12 in the top thereof. Each two adjacent leaves are connected to: gether by means of a hinge-rod 19that is arranged rotatively in the groove 12 on the top of the flange 18 and under the plates 1:

of the hinge-bar of the forward one of the two leaves, each hinge-rod havmg two 1ntegrally formed links 20 and 20' on the ends thereof, and extending at right-angles to the axis of the hinge-rod, the hinge rod serving to connect the links pivotally to a leaf, each link having a pivot-hole 21in the.

end thereof, the links extending to the ends of the next adjacent rearward hinge-bar, each one of the intermediate hinge-bars havbill -holding leavesthe holes 21 and screwedv into the holes E22, 7

thus connecting. the hinge-barsof two leaves together. The linksmay .be'of such length,

relatively to the widths of the hinge-bars, that the hinge-bars will be close together whenresting on the same plane, or the hinge-bars. may be somewhat narrower as shown for clearness, and the remaining por- 7 tions of the leaves will be so designed as to be close together 'in a compact group. The hinge-bar 24c ofthe'rearleaf has a pair of lugs 25 and 25 at theunder side of the rear portion thereof, and this hinge-bar, like the others, has the groove-'12 in the top "thereof and also the holes 2 to receive the pivots whereby it is connected to a:pair of the links 20 and 20-,'and a rod 26 isvheld see curely on the flange '13 by means of the leaf 10. I 7 v As is usual, the front leaf 8 has framestrips 27 on the rear sidefthereof, the intermediate leaves, each have frame-strips 28'or 28 on both sides "thereof, and the rear. leaf 10 has frame-strips 29 only on'tbe forward side thereof and the frontleaf has billclips 30 on the rear side thereof and similar bill-clips 30" or 30" are arranged on both sides of the intermediate leaves, and on the. forward sideonly of the rear leaf, for hold ing the billsslips securely on the leaves in the usual manner. The, links 20 and 20' are ofsuitabl'e length so that the leaves will be slightly separated when the links are in hori- Zontal positions but-will draw the leaves close together when the bottoms of the hinge-bars are in one and the same plane, and the links are inclined as :in Fig. 2,0r when the leaves are steppedup in their'normal positions, and the links are in opposite inclined planes, as in Fig; 3, or Figs. 4; and 11, so that it will be apparentthat if the" group as shown in Fig.2 be turned for ward so that the leaves will be in horizontal position they will all lie fairly one upon another with theirhinged ends in the same 7 vertical plane. Theupper ends of the leaves have index characters as 31 or 31 on the forward sides thereof, the indexing being plainly visible toan observer at the front of the leaves.

A pair of supports as 32 and 32 are suitably attached fixedly to the case in the upper 1 portion thereof, two links 33 and 33' are connected to the support 32' at a suitable distance apart, and two other links 34 and 3.4 are connected to the other support 32, the links being connected by means of pivots 35. A back-board. 36 having reinforcements 36" is provided with a pair; of pivot-bars 37 and 37 at the bottom thereof and the pivotbars, are connected by pivots 38 to the links last-referredto whereby the back-boardis plates Mjfor securing thehinge-bar to the supported so as to swing forward-or backward while remaining upright at all times, its position when moved forward being nearly parallel to its-position when moved rearward, said back-board and its connecting bars and links forminga follower to move the rearmost leaves forward by simple means, when the forward leaves are drawn on the desk top 6, so as to be within con venient reach of the user. The bottom of the back-board '36 is provided with sockets 39 into which the lugs 25 and 25 of the hinge-bar of the rear leaf are inserted for support, and the upper end of the backboard 36 is provided with a button or latch L0 to engage the upper end of the rear leaf 10, and thereby secure'it to the back-board Supporting devices for the front leaf comprise preferably a pair of plate springs ll and ll that are securedon the floor 5 under the group of leaves and extend forward approximately to the plane of the front leaf and preferably having a tie-bar 42 attached thereto, the springs being pro vided with a pair of hooks 4:3 and 43 respectively that are engagedby the hingepins 17 and 17 of the pivotbar 11, the loops of the hooks being rearward of their points and serving as pivotal supports when the forward leaves are drawn down on the top 6.

A pulley 44 is suitably supported by the back 2 slightly lower than the back-board 36, and another pulley 45 is suitably supported near the bottom 1 of the case, a cord 46 or similar device extending under the pulley 1-5 and upward over the pulley 44- between the two pulleys and the back 2, the upper end of the cord being attached to a lug l7 with which the bottom of the backb'oard36 is provided. The lower end of the cord is connected to a relatively long coil spring 48 to which is connected a hook 4 9 that'is adapted to be adjustably connected to a rack-platebO which is secured to the bottom 1 and provided with teeth 51 so that the hook may be connected to either one of the teeth for adjusting the tension of the spring. It will be seen therefore that the action of the spring pulling on the cord46 constantly draws the back-board 36 rearward, and the links 20 and 20 act-to draw all the leaves rearward, one against another because of the fact that the hinge-rod 19 of either leaf is located above the pivots 23 and 23 of the leaf whereby it is connected to the 'next adjoining forward leaf, the hooks and .43 acting to resist the pull of the spring and hold down the forward leaves. The tension of the spring also assists in lifting the leaves after they have been drawn forward, as will be obvious.

In Figs. 11 to 16 inclusiveare shown modifications in the "supporting and balancing devicesof the leaves which provide that instead of drawing the rearward leaves for ward when the forward leaves are down, the forward leaves are drawn rearward while they are being drawn down upon the top 6, so that the user may find the rearward upright leaves within convenient reach by advancing toward them while the forward leaves are being drawn down for use. For supporting the rear-leaf a backboard 52 is secured against the back 2 of the case as by knees 53 and 53 or otherwise as may be desired, and it is provided with the sockets 39 and the button e0 whereby the rear-leaf 10' is connected in a stationary mannerto the back-board. It will be understood of course that the back 2 of the case may be suitably equipped to adapt it to serve as a back-board 52 For pivotally supporting the-front leaf 8 a movable pivotblock 54; is provided that is supported by the floor 5 and may slide thereon and obviously may be provided with roller bearings if desired, although while in use the block does not necessarilymove in contact with the floor, and the block is provided with grooved rollers 55 and 55 that engage the under sides of a pair of track-rails 56 and 56 which are mounted on the sides 3 and 3 of the case and which cooperate with the pivotal connections to move and guide the block 5e during movements of the leaves, the result being that the block may move forward or backward in one plane and cause the leaves to operate in the desired manner. The block 54 is provided with the pivotinghooks 43 and 43 which are engaged by the pivot-pins 17 and 17 of the front leaf. A grooved pulley 57 is suitably supported at the front of the floor 5, and another pulley 58 is suitably supported near the bottom 1, and forward of the pulley 57. A cord 59 or similar device is connected to the spring 48 and extends under the pulley and up over the pulley 57 and is attached to the block in any suitable manner, as by a clamp 60, so, that the action of the spring 4-8 operates to constantly draw the pivotingblock 54; forward and therefore tends to draw the'bottoms of the leaves forward, the result being that the leaves are spring-balanced by applying the tension to the forward leaf instead of applying it to the rear leaf. With this modified construction and arrangement of the balancing-cord when one or more of the forward leaves are drawn down on the top 6 as in Fig. 13 the leaves will lie fairly one upon another without being stepped, and as each leaf is drawn down it is drawn rearward and forces the leaves that may be under it rearward also by means of the links 20 and 20, as will be clearly understood by reference to the drawings.

When it is desired to avoid projections at the front of the front leaf and at the rear of the rear leaf, the hinge-bars of these leaves may be made relatively narrower than the hinge-bars of the intermediate leaves as illustrated in Fig. 16 in which the hinge-bar Ll has a groove 12 in the upper forward portion thereof, and the leaf 8 has a flange l8 turned rearward in the groove so that the leaf proper is flush withthe forward side of the hinge-bar. A plate'll is secured by a screw 15to the top of the hinge bar'and extends over thehinge-rod 19 and through the slot oraperture 16, the plate having -an angle-flange against-the front of the hinge-bar and secured thereto by a screw 15. The hingebar'll is provided with the hinge-pin 17 as hereinbefore described. In practical use it is customary to place duplicate bills of sale on the bill-holding leaves in systematic order so that the account of any credit customer may be instantly found by the merchant using the credit accounting system and appliances. In order to insert new billslips or ascertain the amount due fromthe customer, the leaf containing this account together with all leaves that may be forward of such leaf are drawn forward onto thetop 6 except when theaccount desiredis on the forward side of any leaf, in which case such leaf need not be drawn forward; In the conduct of a large business a great many leaves may be required in a group to accommodate a large number of accounts, and therefore the convenience of having the rear leaves within easy' reac'h when the forward "leaves are drawnidown will be apparent, this being accomplished in a simple manner by the present invention, including the modified form of construction. It may be remarked that in the modified construction the front leaf 8 when drawn down. on top 6 may extend forward beyond the front? a suitable distance, and then when other leaves are drawn forward so that otherwise it would be inconvenient to reach the rear leaves, the. diiiiculty is obviated by reason of the forward leaves being drawn rearward so thatthe user may advance with them inorder to conveniently reach the rear-leaf. At the close of business hours the forward leaf may be disconnected fromthe pivotinghooks 4-3 and i3 andthe rear leaf disconnected from sockets 39, after which the leaves may be bunched conveniently as illustrated in Fig. 2 for insertion in a suitable place for safe keeping.

I disclaim as my invention a series of filing leaves located face to face, and a series of links connecting the normal lower ends of the leaves, one end of each link be ing pivoted to one leaf adjacent to its lower end, andthe other end beingpivoted to the adjoining leaf above the pivot-point of another ,link, whereby the leaves are adapted to be collocated' either in echelon or in a rectangular pack and to have their free ends opened apart, believing George Jacobs to 14;; extending be the original,and first inventor of'the I series of leaves having pivots removably connected to the pivoting hooks, meansfor supporting :the opposite end leaf ,of-the se ries of leaves, and a spring con'nected with the .case and having operative connection with one of the end leaves and acting to cause pressure between the pivots and the loops of the hooks to. normally hold the leaves in substantially upright positions.

2. "Filing appliances including a case, a

pair of pivoting hooks mounted in the case with the loops .of the hooks rearwardof the points thereof a plurality of bill-holdingleaves arranged as agroup, the foremost anda'earmost leaves being uter leaves of the group, means loosely connectingthe leaves one toanother, all the leaves beingnormally upright %'in the case, the foremost one of the leaveshaving -a pairof ipivots connected to the .pivotinghooks, all the leavesbeing mov able to horizontal positions, means supporting the rearmost one ofthe leaves,a spring connected with the case, and means serving to connect-the vspring :operatively with one of the outer leaves, the ;spring acting to.

cause ,pressureibetween the pair of pivots and the loops of the pairof hooks'to normally holdthe leavesnin substantially up; right positions. v

3. In ;a filing appliance, the combination ofa plurality'of leaves, means for normally supporting the leaves as a whole uprightly n echelon comprlsing-a relatively stationary support for-one end leaf, a movable support for the other endleaf, and means'connecting the normally-lower endsoftheleaves loosely together; whereby the leaves are suspended between thesupports and are permitted to forma rectangular pack as they areswung from uprightto reclined position. i

4. ElllIW a alianc'es includin a series of b i b leaves arran ed as a normall -.u ri htgroup, a series of hinge-rods having each a pair oflinks rigid thereon and Connecting the normally lower ends of the leaves-together, the hinge rods being rotatively' 00nnected each to '2; leaf, andthe links connected pivotally to an adjacent leaf.

5. Filing appliances including a case, aseries of leaves grouped uprightly in the case and therea-rmost oneof'the leavessup;

portedinthe case, and means connecting the normally ,lower ends of the leaves loosely case-and the rearmost one of the leaves sup--- ported in the case, means connecting the normally lower ends of the leaves loosely together whereby the leaves intermediate of the foremost 'andrearmost leaves are suspended in echelon relative to the rearmost one of the leaves and the forward ones to thenext adjacent rearward ones, the foremost one of the leaves being pivotally connected with the case, and a spring connected with the case and acting through the pivotal connections of'the leaf with the case to normally hold the leaves upright. I

'7. Filing appliances including a case with a back-board provided with supporting devices for connecting a leaf thereto, a substantially stationary supporting device mounted in the case forward-of the plane of the back-board and in a lower plane than the supporting devices thereof, and a plurality of upright bill-holding leaves having links connecting. the leaves one to another at their lower ends, the rearmost one of the leaves having bearingdevices connected removably to the supporting devices of the backboard and the foremost one of the leaves pivotally connected removably to the stationary supporting device.

8. Filing appliances including a case, guides mounted in the case for guiding horizontally, an upright back-board mounted on the guides to move horizontally, a substantially stationary supporting device mounted in the case forward of the plane of the back-board, a plurality of bill-holding leaves arranged in a group, the leaves being normally upright and the rearmost one of the leaves removably connected to the backboard and the foremost one of the leaves having pivots removably connected to the supporting device for moving the leaves to horizontal positions, hinging means connecting the leaves one to another, and a spring mounted in the case and acting through the back-board and the supporting device to normally hold the leaves upright.

9. In filing appliances, the combination of a case, two pairs of links pivotally supported in the case, a back-board supported by the links to swing in the case, a supporting device mounted in the case, and a plurality of bill-holding leaves connected together and the rearmost one of the leaves connected to the back-board, the foremost one of the porting device.

10. In filing appliances, the combination of a case,a pair of pivoting supports mounted in the case, supporting guides mounted in the case to guide horizontally, a backboard supported by the guides to. move horizontally, a, plurality of bill-holding leaves arranged as a group and the rearmost one.

thereof connected to the back-board, the foremost one of the leaves being connected plvotally to the pivcting supports, means .loosely'connecting the leaves one to another at their normal lower ends, the leaves normally being upright and movable forward to horizontal positions, the forward movements of the leaves drawing the back-board for ward, and means connected with the backboard for drawing the back-board rearward and the leaves to upright positions.

'11. In a filing appliance, the combination of a casing, a series of leaves having con nections between them, said connections permitting said leaves to swing relatively to each other, means for guiding the rearmost leaf of the series, and a spring support on the casing for the frontmost leaf and permitting it to be operated pivctally.

12. In a filing appliance, the combination of a casing, a series of leaves having connections between them, said connections permitting said leaves to swing relatively to each other, means for guiding the rearmost leaf of the series, the said guiding means comprising a pair of links pivoted at their opposite ends to said casing and said rear most leaf, and means for supporting the frontmost leaf of the series.

13. A frame for a filing appliance comprising a base bar formed with a longitudinally extending groove, a back provided .with a flange resting in the groove, a rod arranged in the groove and engaging with the said flange, and a plate secured to the base bar and overlying the said rod to secure it and the said back in the groove.

14. In a filing appliance, the combination of a casing, a series of leaves having connections between them permitting said leaves to swing relatively to each other, the front end leaf of the series of leaves being provided with pivots, means, carried by the casing, for yieldably' supporting the pivots of the front end leaf, and means for guiding the rear end leaf.

15. In a filing appliance, a case, a series of leaves, means permitting the said leaves to swing from vertical to horizontal position in the case and vice versa, and a follower pivoted above the leaves to the case and extending back of the leaves.

16. In a filing appliance, a case, a series of leaves, means permitting the leaves to swing from vertical to horizontal position in the case and vice versa, a follower pivoted a distance beyond the free ends of the leaves and engaging with a leaf of the leaf pack.

17 In w filing applianceya cit'se, a" serigs in p'feSnMUf two witnesssgnon tll firstiday of leaves, means permitting the leaves E0 of April, 1908;- swin from verfiicztl to horizontal positions l H and 3m v ersa', a' follower pivoted above the E lower ends 0f the leaves and engaging With Wifirlessesr a leaf of the leaf pack. 7 J. J. BROWN, In testimony whereof, I afii'xmy signatur- L. W'.-IJEWIs;

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